The Way He Sees Her
by lovinleyton320
Summary: What if S2 had not happened the way it did...if Lucas and Peyton could have a chance at happiness. What if you knew what Lucas was thinking and .... the way he sees her. Please R & R.
1. Prologue

**Well, first of all, I don't own anything that has to do with One Tree Hill. I'm just borrowing the characters and some of the storylines to create my own story! **

**Secondly, I am going to continue The Things That Move Us I PROMISE! I'm just having some writer's block with it at the moment. I'm not abandoning it though, I want you guys to know.**

**Lastly, this new story is set after Lucas has just returned to Tree Hill. There will be differences however. I don't want to reveal them now though. As the story progresses if there's something that needs clarification for you to understand it of course I will explain where I think I'm going with this.**

**And of course, as always, please review. Your comments mean so much to me as a writer. Without words of encouragement, it's hard to find the motivation. Thank you!**

**Prologue**

Blonde hair whips around a pale face, wild and impossibly curly. Mysterious eyes flick from place to place, a sketchpad resting on her knees. Her fingers grip a charcoal pencil; a small frown plays across her features. What causes that frown? Is it from concentrating or because she's unhappy? He wouldn't know anymore. She stops. There is a blank look in her eyes. Slowly she leans her head back against the brick wall, not caring that strands of her hair will stick to it. He sees her take a deep breath as her lids close. She is beautiful. She is sadness. Apparently having lost her inspiration, she raises a finger to scratch her cheek. Turning her head, she sees him staring at her. A small smile tugs at the corner of her mouth, daring to betray her feelings. She quickly buries it, replacing it with her trademark scowl and gathers her things. Secretly she is happy to see his interest. Outwardly she wants nothing to do with him. He sighs as he watches her walk away. She is beautiful. She is sadness. She has slipped through his fingers. This is the way he sees her.

_2 months earlier…_


	2. The Hardest Thing

**The Hardest Thing**

On a cool spring day Keith Scott's car flew past a sign that read "Welcome to Tree Hill." If you hadn't been paying attention, you might have missed it. It's something that a lot of people have said about the small town located in North Carolina. However, that day Keith was not traveling alone. Lucas, his nephew, sat in the passenger seat staring fixedly out the window. His once long and disheveled fair hair had been shaved close to his head, giving him an older appearance, but his cool blue eyes remained the same.

"Welcome to Tree Hill, indeed," Keith muttered as he signaled to turn right. "What're you thinking about Lucas?" But his nephew made no sign that he had heard him. "Lucas? Earth to Lucas Scott. Come in Mr. Scott!" Keith continued, waving his hand in front of Lucas' face.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, Keith…what were you saying?"

"Well you seemed a little quiet so I was wondering what's on your mind. Spaced out a little?"

Lucas sighed and glanced back out the window. Only days ago he had been looking forward to making a fresh start in a new town, though it hurt him to leave his friends behind. Now here he was back where he started. _No, not back where I started_. Taking a moment before he answered Keith he recalled the words Peyton had spoken to him about how he had changed and not for the better. He remembered the look on her face. _Those words cut like knives and the look...the sadness, the disappointment...I'll never cause that again_, he silently resolved.

Turning back to Keith he gave a small smile and assured him nothing was wrong.

"I'm just thinking of a few things I need to do." The rest of the way to Lucas' home was quiet, just the radio playing softly in the background some sad, lonely tune that had long been forgotten. For the most part, the thoughts in his head stayed silent as he tried to clear his mind of everything, but as they drove past a small house a million things began racing into his head and pouring out of his heart. He knew that if he was to come up the walkway and step onto the porch there would be a doormat that read "Sawyer" waiting to welcome him. Actually it would welcome anyone but him and he was pretty sure the occupant of the house felt the same way. At that moment he decided he would cause her no more heart ache. It would be the hardest thing he'd ever have to do, but he was going to stay out of Peyton Sawyer's life for good.

**AN: I'm one of the biggest fans of LP so don't worry about them. I wouldn't want to lose readers b/c they think I'm going to destroy LP. **

**Now, thank you so much for the reviews for my little prologue. I think I got more for my little intro than I did for all 3 chapters of "The Things that Move Us." (shameless plug: check that one out too!) **

**drown-in-fate:**you might find that I may be keeping that SL. I've alway thought they didn't do it justice.

**Laurie:** thank you for the review! I will definitely be continuing this.

**bitterkidxsweety:** Esther, thank you for the kind words. This will be a bit different. A little less campy drama I think. More feeling.

**Jessica:** Ha! That's my name too! Well, I didn't leave myself a review I promise. Thank you for taking a moment to read this.

**Kayla:** Same goes to you! I really appreciate you reading and commenting. I hope you all stick around for this one!

**More to come for Lucas and Peyton...stay tuned. **


	3. You Never Know Who You're Gonna Run Into

**You Never Know Who You're Going to Run Into**

With a heavy heart Lucas stepped through the front door and into his home. It was quiet. His mother appeared to be gone. Sighing, he set down his bags and looked around. It was comforting to be back in his house; the butterflies that had taken up residence in his stomach a few days before had flown away when he found out he would not be starting a new life in a new town. Yet something else had taken their place. Emptiness was there. He could feel it in the pit of his stomach, in his heart and in his head. Walking down the hall, the silence that at first had been a comfort began to surround him, suffocating him. Sometimes when a room is too silent, a slight ringing will sound off in a person's ear, as if the brain is yelling at the body to leave, to find laughter and noise--to find life. And this is what drove Lucas out of the house, to the café that his mother owned and ran.

The weather that day seemed to match his mood. The wind whipped through his loose jacket sending shivers down his body as he tried to pull it closer to block out the cool air. Clouds hung low in the sky as if to warn the people down below not to be too happy on such a bleak afternoon. Lucas took their advice and a small frown appeared on his face. He jogged the last few steps to the door of the café, and hurried inside blowing the air out of his lungs relieved to be inside, yet exasperated with the crummy weather.

Lucas took off his jacket, peering out the window as he watched raindrops begin to fall from the sky. Perfect.

The café was warm and cozy, yet unusually empty. Lucas supposed that most people were staying in on account of the rain. As he moved to sit down at the counter, however, he spotted someone in the far corner of the room. His breath caught in his throat and his heart began to beat just a bit faster when he took in the curly wisps of hair falling out of a messy and careless ponytail. She sat in an oversized chair with her legs curled up close to her body. She seemed to be staring out the window, watching the rainfall just as Lucas had. A book lay next to her on the table. It was Of Mice and Men, one of his favorites.

_I told her she should read that book. I'm surprised she listened to me. Actually, I'm not. She always took my interests as seriously as her own. I could've suggested she read Pets of the White House and she would have picked it up just to see what I thought was so great about it. I wonder if she likes it…I could just go ask her. Pretend like I never left in the first place. Maybe things could be different…no! You made a promise to yourself. Leave her alone._

These thoughts raced through his head as he tried to make up his mind on what to do. He was just turning around to head back out the door when a petite woman with dark brown hair came out of the back room, wiping her hands on a towel. Her face lit up when she saw her young son standing awkwardly in the middle of her café.

"Lucas! What on earth are you doing here?" Arms were flung around him as she squeezed him tight.

Green eyes stole themselves away from the window as Peyton came out of her thoughts.

His eyes shifted nervously back towards the corner of the room as his mother continued fawning over his unexpected appearance. He was surprised to see her eyes on him. Her lips, perfect in his opinion, formed one word. _Lucas_. But her face held many emotions. Joy and fear, happiness and confusion…. and anger. They were all there. He blinked and she was in front of him.

"Luke."

He winced inside. Unlike his "Peyt" she seemed to shorten his name only when she was mad at him. It wasn't a question either. He wondered what she was waiting for. An explanation? Would it really matter if he gave her one? He couldn't even understand the things that had happened the past few weeks, how could he begin to explain anything to her?

Karen sensed tension between the two teenagers and excused herself to the back room once again. _What has he gotten himself into now,_ she wondered.

"Peyton. What's up?" Lucas tried to control his voice. He felt the last thing he needed was to start squeaking like a little boy just entering puberty.

"Is that really the first thing you have to say to me?" Hands on her hips, her voice defiant and strong, Lucas couldn't help but love her even more. But he knew what he had to do. _Distance yourself…get out of here. _

"Listen, it was really nice to see you, but I was just grabbing something to eat at home. Maybe I could give you a call later," he replied, gesturing towards the door and acting as if he hadn't heard a word she had just said. She simply looked at him, staring him down like it would bring a flow of answers to her if she just searched hard enough. Slowly she brought her gaze to his eyes and she saw something in them, a distance, that she didn't like. A lone tear stung behind her eyelid, but she would not let it fall.

"Don't bother, Lucas. I don't need to hear a word you have to say."

Lucas watched as her face became expressionless and her eyes blank. For a second he had seen pain there and it took all his strength not to pull her into his chest and whisper all the things he had wanted to say since he had first met her, but he resisted. Nodding his head in understanding he walked towards the door, grabbing his jacket as he exited. There was a slight tinkling of bells above the door, but it was the only sounds save for the pattering of the rain on the windows that echoed in the café. Peyton didn't move from her place in the middle of the room. Shejust stood there and wondered what had happened to make him so cold.

**AN:** **I'mso excited! This story has been added to someone's favorite list! Yay! Ok...anyway, enough of my giddyness. I hope you guys all enjoyed the update. I hope you will all continue reading as I have a lot of ideas in mind for this story and I'm very excited about it. Here's a few personal notes:**

**writie: **Nonna! hug Thank you so much for the wonderful reviews for BOTH of my stories. I wasn't expecting such long ones at all. I'm really glad that you like them, especially this one b/c it's shaping up to be something good I think.Like I said earlier, less campy drama than in TTTMU. I will be reviewing your stories OF COURSE. But I can already tell you're a wonderful writer from what I've read. I hope you continue reading my fics and that you enjoyed the update.

**Laurie:** Thanks again for the review. I'm glad you're not worried, but I'm sure you know that you don't need to be. LP are in good hands with me, I promise.

**Mon: **Sweetie, I'm so glad to have you as a reader. You're just the best and it always makes me so happy to know you like what I'm writing. You've been there since the beginning when I was posting over at the Corner Forum.

**Jessica: **Aw, thanks for sticking around and reading! I'm so glad you're liking the story. Thanks for the review and your time.

**tamplin:** I'm glad you stumbled upon my story! It's so nice to get reviews--I hope you'll continue reading!


	4. Danger on the Horizon?

**Dangeron the Horizon?**

A second tinkling of bells announced the arrival of another person coming into the café a few minutes later.

A flash of a Burberry patterned umbrella and a swish of dark auburn hair identified the person as Brooke Davis. Shaking out her umbrella over the doormat as she ran a hand over her clothes to smooth them down, she spotted her best friend, Peyton, looking distraught.

"P.Sawyer! I thought I'd find you here. You know I've been running **_all_** over town looking for your skinny butt?" She gave her an accusatory glare and then smiled brightly.

Peyton returned it with a faint smile of her own and shrugged, turning to go sit back down in her chair.

"I'm sorry…did we have plans today? Maybe I forgot. I was just sitting here, reading my book, watching the rain, you know not really doing anything, minding my own business—''

"Peyton!" Brooke exclaimed holding up her hand to stop her. "Sloooooow down. What's wrong? You're rambling a mile a minute."

She sighed, putting her head in her hands and then looked up at Brooke, her eyes troubled. "It's Lucas. He came back and he was here at the café. Just five minutes ago." She looked down at her hands, which were now clasped in front of her. Slowly opening them, she fiddled with a slim silver ring on her thumb. She recalled how distant he'd been; he'd practically ignored her! And she could sense that he had been about to leave without speaking to her at all, until his mom foiled his escape. Escape. Yeah, that's what it was. He was trying to escape her.

"You're kidding! You have to be. That bro ho actually set foot in this town and **_spoke _**to you after what he did? Sleeping with psycho strangers, leaving town without a word, cheating on his girlfriend—sorry, best friend, but that was messed up—who does he think he is!" Brooke had flown from the couch she was perched on and was now pacing the room, hands flying wildly as she spoke. She was about to start another small rant when she stopped and paused, thinking.

"Why did he come back anyway?"

"I don't know, he was avoiding me like if I even looked at him he'd burst into flames or something. It was so weird."

Brooke studied the girl in front of her. She could tell when Peyton was upset. Months ago she had been blind to her best friend's anguish over her relationship with Lucas, but now she realized how much she took Peyton for granted then. She didn't want to do that again. "P, what's say you and me get out of here? Let's go rent some movies with beautiful men in them and pig out on ice cream. It's the perfect day to stay in." She pouted a bit, but with hopeful eyes and Peyton gave a sigh and then nodded yes. The brunette squealed and threw her arms around Peyton in a big hug.

"Ok, let's go!"

The two girls ran out of the café, trying to both fit under Brooke's umbrella. After renting a bevy of hunky men movies and stocking up on terribly fattening, but terribly delicious food, they made their way back to Brooke's house.

After they got through the door coming out of the rain, they shook out their wet things and headed for the kitchen. It was decided that Brooke would be in charge of the food and Peyton the hunky men movies. She left the kitchen and sat down in the spacious living room in front of the TV and finally decided on one, sticking it in the DVD player and standing up.

"Brooke, hey, you coming or what?" Peyton yelled. She heard Brooke's faint cry of "yes" and was about to sit down when the door bell rang. Peyton waited, though she didn't know why, for Brooke to answer the door and when Brooke didn't she pulled herself up and walked to the door.

"What are **_you_** doing here?" She asked, looking slightly disgusted, when she realized who it was.

"Relax, Blondie, I'm just here to see my girl," a dark-haired boy with blindingly white teeth snapped back as he shoved inside past her.

"All right, P.Sawyer, here I come! Ready to gain 10 pounds and drool all over the tab….Felix? What are doing here?" Brooke asked as she came into the room. She looked from Peyton, who was standing with her arms crossed in front of her looking agitated to Felix who was, as always, posing because he thought he was oh so fine.

"Yuck, déjà vu. Blondie here just asked the same thing. I'm here for you, baby. You know we have _arrangements_," he replied, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, right. I completely forgot. Peyton, I'm so sorry…but maybe we could—"

"No, Brooke, it's fine" she interjected. "We have the movies for, what, 5 days? We'll watch them another time. Have fun…call me later with the—well, no don't call with the details." She finished glaring at Felix.

Brooke looked torn, but finally nodded and gave her slim blonde friend a hug before she left.

Outside, Peyton wondered what she would do now. So much for their fun night in. She sighed pulling her leather jacket tight around her body and walked to her car. Being alone gave the events of the afternoon a chance to enter her mind again and once more she felt confused, sad and angry. Sitting at the wheel of her old Comet she reached for her cell. If Lucas and Brooke wouldn't be there for her, someone else, something else…would.

**AN: Ok, well, here's a note..I don't know if Peyton's car is a Comet, but I read once I think that it was. So there it is. If it's not, I'm sorry!**

**You guys, it's so exciting to see you all liking this story so much, or at least liking it enough to read it. So...**

**bitterkidxsweety: **Esther, your comments were so sweet. I'm glad that you like the way I'm writing this. I think you're very talented, so it means a lot to me for you to say that.

**NatessaScott:** Nice to see you!I think that was your first post so I want to say welcome to my story! I'm glad that you like it and believe me, I'm having LP withdrawals too! That's why I write and read fics...so I can imagine! Hopefully we won't have to imagine much longer... ;)

**writie:** Nonna, first off, no I haven't chosen a pairing for Brooke, I don't know if she'll have one period. This is mostly an LP story. Sorry, if you thought I'd be NB. evil cackle I'm sorry... :) Thank you so much for reviewing and reading. I think Lucas will realize that he's wrong too, but not before _other _things happen. Just wait and we'll see.

**Lumifan5: **Kayla, thanks for the review. I noticed it's on your fav list and I rejoiced. That's so exciting to me. Thank you for that compliment. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

**cabot007:** Thanks for sticking around! I love you loyal readers. :)

**Jessica: **The same goes to you as for cabot007! I'm so glad to see you're still reading and reviewing.

**Kelly: **I'm so glad you came over and checked out my story. :) Also that you took the time to review. I hope that you'll continue reading and liking it. hug

**Laurie: **Laur, Laur, Laur...I have a reason for Lucas being the way he is. It has its purpose. Coming back wasn't exactly distancing himself, but we're assuming he didn't have a choice and now that he's there he's going to try to leave Peyton alone. He thinks he hurt her too much by being in her life. There are many things to come, my dear. Many places to go. I hope you still liked the chapter and this new one even though you thought Lucas was being a git. :) I appreciate you reading at all.

**Mon: **I wish I talked to you more often! I miss you! But I'm so happy you're liking the new story. I think it's going over better than TTTMU is. You always have such sweet things to say. hug I hope you enjoyed this last chapter.

**drown-in-fate:**I'm sorry I confused you! How so? I hope you still liked the last chapter anyway.

**Ok, I hope I didn't miss anyone. I know this chapter was mostly BP, but I like them as friends and it's going to set up other things. Ok? Ok! Hope I hear from you all in the reviews and hopefully new readers too! **


	5. Never Thought I'd End Up Here

**Never Thought I'd End Up Here**

She had promised herself she would never turn to this again. Yet here she was, sitting inside her car waiting for the bane of her existence to pull up and make all her troubles fall away. Every time she saw his face she cursed the day she allowed him to wiggle his way into her life. She hated the moments of weakness he thrived on. She hated showing weakness to anyone, but to him? It was horrible letting him of all people see her vulnerability.

"God. What am I doing here? I was going to be better than this!" Peyton burst out suddenly, banging the wheel with the heel of her hand. She stared at her long pale fingers for a moment and then slowly she raised her right hand to twist the thin ring on the thumb of the left. She could be seen doing this often when she was nervous or upset. Most thought it was just a little trinket that she wore, but she knew it was so much more than that.

The ring had been her mother's.

After Anna Sawyer died, Peyton found herself holing up in her parents' room. She would lie in their bed, under the covers or trail her fingers along her mother's clothes still hanging in the closet. If she could be surrounded by all of her things, it was as if she wasn't really gone. One day, she spotted a small box under many others on a shelf high up in the little room. **L + A** was scrawled on the side, faded, but still legible. Curious, the young girl had run off to find a stool. When she came back she retrieved the box and sat down on the closet floor with her legs crossed. Tucking a curl behind her ears, Peyton slowly lifted the top up and peered inside. The box was mostly filled with little scraps of paper on which her father had written little notes to her mother. There was a dried flower and a few photos, and after Peyton had read every note and gazed teary-eyed at each photo she found a small, maroon pouch waiting at the bottom. Hands trembling slightly, she picked it up and turned it upside down. A small silver ring fell out into her palm along with a tiny piece of paper that said "To my heart, love, Larry."

She kept it on a chain around her neck until it fit her own finger and now she never took it off. As the memory faded, she looked around. She remembered where she was and a single tear dropped from her eye. She was about to shift into drive when a pair of headlights shone brightly through the windshield. It was Rick's car. Now came the decision. The memory of her mother had deepened her shame at the situation, but it had also brought back the pain and loneliness of growing up without her. In her mind's eye images of Haley and Nathan laughing happily, Brooke scampering off with Felix, Lucas giving her the cold shoulder and Jake leaving flashed before her. She was so alone and she didn't want to feel it anymore. If she could forget for just a few hours, it would be worth it.

The transaction went smoothly. She handed over the money and in turn received a small bag of white powder.

"Don't hesitate to call again. I'm always around." Rick grinned smarmily at her.

"Sure," Peyton mumbled in response, eyeing the ground as she walked away.

Feeling slightly guilty, but also relieved, Peyton sped home, blasting her radio and singing loudly….

"_Came a time when every star falls _

_Brought you to tears again _

_We are the very hurt you sold _

_And what's the worst you take _

_From every heart you break _

_And like a blade you stain _

_Well, I've been holding on tonight…"_

The tires squealed as she pulled into her driveway and put the car in park. Once inside, she made her way up to her room and shut the door behind her and then what felt like minutes, but wasa few hours later, she was coming down from her euphoric high. She had never experienced anything quite like it and it did what she wanted—took her mind off things. Until it wore off; that is. Then she felt even more horrible than before. It was a sick cycle really. She glanced towards her bathroom where the evidence of her weakness littered the floor. The little bag, a CD to take it from…she looked away. Everything was starting to come back to her. She pushed the here and now out of her head. Instead she thought of sweet kisses amongst dusty books in a library and stolen glances across a table; smiles he coaxed out of her but also, of course, the heartache.

A barely perceivable whisper escaped her lips.

"I miss you."

Then a strangled sob.

Peyton grabbed a pillow and rolled onto her other side. The tears were streaming down her cheeks freely as her eyes searched her walls. They came to rest on a sketch of Jake and Jenny. Wiping the salty tears from her face she pondered the last time she had seen him. She wondered…what had that kiss meant? Her sobs quieted, but her breathing still ragged, she got up and unpinned the sketch and held it in front of her. Silently she walked towards another sketch on an opposite wall. There she pinned it back up, next to one that showed her and Lucas with the words "And now we can't have it" at the top.

"We'll see," she said softly.

**AN: Oooook. Now before anyone throws something at me I want to remind you all that I have a purpose in mind and I need Jake in the picture to help serve that purpose. I hope you enjoyed this chapter despite no interaction between Lucas and Peyton. I'm going to shoot for that in the next update. I also want to apologize for the long wait. I lost a bit of my motivation but I'm hoping you'll all be back and reading the new chapter and reviewing. Oh, how I love reviews. :) You lurkers that don't comment, please do! I'd love to hear from you! **

**The lyrics are from My Chemical Romance's "Helena" and the title of the chapter comes from the lyrics of Lifehouse's "Sick Cycle Carousel."**

**Laurie:** I still worry about you sometimes. I'm hoping that the lack of interaction btw LP won't drive off readers. I promise it's coming in due time. True love has obstacles after all. --wink-- Thanks for always reading and reviewing though! It means a lot to me.

**LeytonFan5:** Kayla, thanks for your sweet comment! And I'm sorry I didn't update soon. But maybe you just read it over and over in the meantime. I wouldn't mind that! I hope you enjoyed the update and will keep reading:)

**Mon:** Aw, I know you don't like Brooke really in any shape or form, but everything has its purpose. Glad you still liked it anyway. I don't post much on OTHCF either anymore. Just enough to update and what not. Now, it seems odd to have a conversation with you through my story so I'll just say I'm so glad you like the story! See you on the board!

**bitterkidxsweety:** Esther, now I'm glad you liked BP. I like them too in the right circumstances. Nathan would've been a fine guess if that was where I was going with the story (I do like NP too after all!) alas, you can see that it wasn't Nathan though. And I agree on Felix. He's "meh" in my book. He won't be around much, I promise.

**cabot07:** I'm so happy you like the story despite the interference of the Tooth Ranger (Felix). Haha, it's a TWoP joke. Anyway, thanks for being there everytime I update! That's so awesome of you!

**melli:** Yay! New reader! I think? Anyway, welcome to my story. Sit back and enjoy it! Glad to have you.

and **Kelly:** Sorry I didn't tell you! I'll be sure to let you know this time! I'm glad you came and checked it out anyway and discovered I had. I usually post on the thread when I do, so you can always look out for that.


	6. One Thing is True

**Disclaimer: **I never do these things, but I suppose I should. I don't own any of the characters or lines/plots you recognize from the show! PLEASE read and REVIEW. It's what keeps us writers going. Knowing that someone likes what they are doing. Here's the newest addition to **The Way He Sees Her.**

**One Thing is True**

Lucas rolled out of bed early Monday morning feeling the effects of a night spent tossing and turning. Everything thatcould move hurt as he walked to the bathroom rubbing his neck. After turning the shower on and making sure the water was hot he stepped in front of the sink and studied his face in the mirror. He looked damn tired. Sighing he turned back towards the shower. It felt calming to be under the pounding heat of the water. Steam rose outside the shower curtain and Lucas thought about the day ahead. The only people he had seen since he came home were his mother and Peyton. Seeing Peyton had not gone well, to say the least. He had thought it over and decided it was maybe not the best idea to avoid her. He wouldn't go looking for her, but he wasn't going to run away if he saw her. Stepping out into his bedroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, he dressed, kissed his mother good-bye and was on his way.

Ten minutes later, he climbed out of his truck and grabbed his book bag, slinging it over his shoulder. He pulled his headphones out and began listening to the "CD of the moment," as he walked towards the school building. In front of him he spotted two girls walking arm in arm, a blonde with curly hair and a brunette who was talking animatedly with her hands.

"Seriously, Brooke…it's ok. I did my own thing, don't worry about it." Peyton insisted. Lucas overheard this as he pulled his headphones from his ears. Nice way _not_ to run into her, idiot, he thought to himself.

"No, I thought this over for a very long time the other night…well more like a half an hour, but still! It just wasn't right to leave you like that and I feel like such a bitch. What exactly did you do after your bad best friend ditched you?"

"Not too much really. I worked on some sketches, talked to Haley for a bit on the phone. Just a pretty…uneventful night," she lied, squinting into the sun.

"Couldn't you find anything more adventurous to do then work on those depressing pictures like you _always _do?" Peyton shot her a murderous glare and Brooke smiled sheepishly. "Before I make daggers shoot from your eyes, I'm going to go to class… shocking, I know! See you later, girly."

Peyton watched Brooke swing her hips as she made her way to the doors and went inside. She shook her head and sighed, if only she knew how "adventurous"she'd been. "Oh, shit!" She exclaimed suddenly. She had left the homework they'd been assigned for the weekend in her car. She whipped around and ran straight into a soft body behind her. Lucas was staring into space when he felt himself collide with her and didn't have a chance at preventing it.

He glanced down and had to suppress a laugh at what he saw. Books turned up, pencils rolling steadily down the pavement and a very angry girl in front of him. Make that _below_ him.

Peyton looked up, but couldn't make out who was standing over her. He was just a shadow in front of the blinding morning sun.

"I'm sorry, really, I just realized I forgot something and—''

"Hey, no problem. Let me help you."

She narrowed her eyes at the voice. "Lucas?"

"Um, yeah…is that a problem?" He asked shifting out of the sunlight so that she could see him.

"I don't need your help." She snapped as she began gathering her things. As the words slipped from her mouth the bell rang for classes to begin and she groaned. "Damn."

"Well, it looks like you could use my help and we're both late to class now anyway." He bent down and picked up one of the books. He stole a glance at her from the corner of his eye and decided she looked a little tired and quite pissed off. "What's got you so upset this morning?" he asked casually, then winced because he was sure he was part of the reason.

"I don't think that's any of your business. Shouldn't you be off avoiding me right now?" She hated being so close to him at that moment. She could feel the heat of his body near hers as she watched his hands swiftly picking up her belongings and placing them in her bag. It irritated her. She wanted to be touched with those hands. Held with them. Her pulse began to race at the thought.

"Listen, Peyton, about the other day…" to her horror she felt him come closer as he placed his hand on her knee. Her knee! She thought she might faint. "I didn't mean to-''

She shook her head, trying to get rid of the daze and pushed his hand away from her.

"I don't need or want an explanation, Lucas. What I need is to get to class. What I want is to not have detention for being late because **you **were in my way." She stood up and swung her bag over her head and onto her shoulder, almost smacking him in the head with it.

"Wait, come back! Seriously, Peyton, I just want to explain." He trailed after her and reached out for her arm. A furious mass of curls whipped around and fiery green eyes pierced his own.

"Save it, Scott."

Then she was gone. He let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding and felt his heart slowing down. To his amazement he let out a chuckle. Scott? She never called him that. He had to say he kind of liked it. "Scott…" he said out loud andgrinned. The last warning bell rang and he looked up at the school. It was going to be a long day. But despite Peyton's brush-off hethought that things might be all right. He was going to prove to her that it was worth the fight to be with him or even just to be friends again. He knew that one thing was true—he couldn't live without her.

**AN: Ok, well, I hope everyone liked this chapter. Some interaction between Lucas and Peyton was well overdue. As you can see they obviously still want and need each other but there are going to be obstacles along the way. True love always has to overcome obstacles. That's why it's better. You have to fight for it. I actually don't have too much to say in my little "note to you" this time! I sort of like it when Lucas and Peyton have a little heat between them brought up from arguing and I hope you do too.**

**Leytonforever03** I'm so glad you started reading my story, Noelle.I hopethat youliked this newchapter.I for one, didn't really like that Peytonturned to drugs on the show, but I reallyfelt like they didn't do the story justice. It was just sort of POOF! and gone. I'd like to do it better. And you might be right aboutLucas.;) Thank you for your review and kind words and I hope you'll continue reading. **Laurie  
** Oh my dear Laurie. I think (crosses fingers) that you'll like this chapter better than the last few although I'm really proud of my history behind Peyton's ring from Ch.4 and I'm glad you liked it too. It means a lot to me that you stick around and read and review. I'm going to moving towardsmore LP interaction,but there will be many more things to come if Iwork it out the way I want. --hugs-- **Boofy** Hey, thanks! I'm glad you like it and I'm glad you reviewed! Hopefully, you'll become a regular. I'm Jessica and welcome to my story! **Jessica**  
Hello there, I can always count on you for a comment. I'm glad you're still liking it. I really like this chapter for some reason so I hope you do too. Thanks for always reading! **Mon**  
I'm really loving the response about Peyton's ring. I thought it was a great addition to Peyton and a nice sentiment to have attached to that ring. I'm happy that you liked it and are still enjoying the story. You are my most loyal reader. You even review for the multiple reposting of TTTMU! I love you for it, dear. **cabot007**  
Now I see you on FF too! It's nice to be getting to know the people that read my stories! Thank you for the compliment. I wanted the sorrow to come through, the desperation. I'm glad you saw it. Peyton is sort of lost right now but I fully intend on fixing that in later chapters. You're so sweet! Sometimes I wonder if what I'm writing is any good but then there's lovely people like you that make me feel ok about it. **That'ssoFetch  
** Tezza! --hug--Welcome to my story. I'm happy to see you! Hope you liked the new chapter. Let me know what you think! **Amber **  
And last, but not least...Amber. I love your fic so I'm so excited you're reading mine and liking it. Hopefully you'll come back for the new update and let me know what you think!


	7. You Come Over Unannounced

**You Come Over Unannounced**

Peyton ran to her first class of the morning snatching a glance at a clock in the hall. She was already ten minutes late. Gasping for breath she reached the door to the classroom and stopped. Running a hand over her forehead, she composed herself and opened the door and slipped into the classroom. The room was dark. Her teacher was using one of his boring slide shows again and he tended to doze off during them. Closing her eyes and whispering a silent "thank you" she made her way to a desk in the back.

"Ms. Sawyer?"

Peyton flinched at the disembodied voice coming from the front of the room. _Damn. _

"How nice of you to join us. I trust you'll be on time to your detention this Friday."

"But I don't have…oh. Wait, you're giving me detention?"

"Class, let's give Ms. Sawyer a hand, she is quite sharp this morning," he glanced around and then back at Peyton. "Yes, detention this Friday, after last period. May I get back to my slide show then?"

She rolled her eyes, muttering curses at him and sank down into a chair. Turning her head to the left she realized she had just plopped down next to Lucas. He was smirking and she wanted to ring his neck.

"Sorry about that," he whispered.

"Stop talking to me. I don't need a second detention." She looked away to the other side of the room. Nathan and Haley were sitting a few rows ahead of them. She watched as they smiled at each other and made faces when the teacher's back was turned. Haley turned around and caught Peyton's eye. Immediately Peyton forced a smile to her lips and Haley grinned back. She put her hand up to her ear in a "call me" gesture and Peyton nodded.

Sighing, she slumped into the back of her desk chair and stole a sideways glance at Lucas. When she realized he was staring back at her, she turned away feeling slightly disturbed that he had caught her.

Irritated by her attitude, though he was largely the cause of it, Lucas decided to take matters into his own hands. He wrote a single line on a piece of notebook paper and ripped it out, throwing it to the ground and pushing it towards Peyton with his toe. She pretended not to notice it, staring resolutely at the front of the room until she felt her desk give a jolt. He had kicked her desk! She glared at him furiously and finally leaned down to retrieve the note. She opened it and read…._Meet me at the Rivercourt at 10._

It was not a question, but a request. She scribbled _I'll think about it _and tossed it back to Lucas. He read it, then looked up at her, straight into her eyes and mouthed "thank you." She knew he meant it. But she also knew she was in deep trouble. The sincerity in his sweet blue eyes brought back all kinds of memories that she had held prisoner in her mind for weeks since she had decided to break it off with him. Before she could get too lost in the memories and in his gaze, the bell rang and class was over. Lucas broke their eye connection and she was left feeling slightly empty once more.

"I'll be seein' you," he said before walking out of the room. The small good-bye had come to mean so many things to her and she found herself really smiling at him for the first time since he had returned. "You just might," she said softly. He stopped and looked back at her, smiling and then winked. "Good to know."

She blushed furiously when she realized that he had heard her and took off towards her next class. Lucas just chuckled and shook his head and went his own way as well.

* * *

She had waited all day. She had checked the clock no more than five times an hour; tapping her foot nervously and now she was finally only a half an hour away from going to see Lucas. She had put on three different outfits and decided they were ALL wrong before going back to what she had been wearing all day. She had dialed Brooke's number countless times for advice, but always hung up before it began ringing. She was sure that Brooke wouldn't really approve of this "meeting" after Peyton's description of their first encounter in the café. But now, here it was, 9:30, and she was sure her heart was going to burst from anticipation.

"I could leave now," she said to the wall across from her bed. "I mean…I'm going to walk so it'll take a few minutes to get there." She got up from the bed and then immediately sat back down. "But maybe I should make him wait. Make him a little worried. Yeah. That sounds good!" So she planted her feet firmly on the floor and put her hands in her lap. After about 5 seconds of glancing around her room, smiling pleasantly, she threw her hands up in the air and exclaimed, "That's it! I have to go now!"

She threw on her jacket and ran down the steps and out her front door.

A tall blonde haired boy could be seen sitting in the park at this very moment. _I wonder if she'll come,_ he sat thinking. He had been at the Rivercourt for at least an hour, shooting hoops even though he actually wasn't supposed to. It had calmed his nerves about this thing–whatever it was--that he and Peyton were about to have. Now he was waiting on one of the picnic tables, the ball between his feet. It was a really beautiful night. The sun had set in fabulous fashion and now the sky was full of stars. The air was crisp and cool as he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. When they opened, she was standing in front of him.

"You're not going all, Zen Buddha on me, are you?" She asked, amused.

He laughed. "No, just enjoying the night. You're early."

"Yeah, well…I didn't want you to think I wasn't coming and be all heartbroken, you know." She replied as she sat down next to him.

"Thanks for the concern."

"Hey, it's more than I could say for you." She said, hearing the bitterness as the words left her mouth. He winced.

"Ouch. I guess I deserved that," he paused waiting for her to object, but she just waited and looked at him pointedly. "All right, I get your point. But listen, I asked you to meet me here because I really think we should talk about what happened between us and what is …or isn't…happening between us now."

"Don't you think it would have helped to have this conversation before you left with hardly a word to me and then came back with even less?" Peyton questioned angrily, getting up from her seat on the bench.

"Peyton," he started, reaching out for her, but she stepped away, "I wanted to talk to you, I did. But I honestly thought it was the best choice to leave Tree Hill. I screwed up so many things in the past few months…so many lives. I thought I could get a fresh start and find the guy I used to be. I wanted to be better for you."

"The guy you used to be…" she scoffed, "you mean the one that sleeps with random strangers or the one that cheats on his girlfriend?"

"The guy you fell for, Peyton!" He walked towards the river and then spun around. "Damn it!" Lucas yelled in frustration. Then, he came back and stood in front of her, watching her blonde curls fly in the breeze. He reached out and tucked one behind her ear and spoke again, much softer. "I know I've made mistakes Peyton, but I wanted to fix them."

Then he did something she never expected him to do. He came so close that she could feel his breath warm on her cheek and she felt dizzy as his lips met hers. She closed her eyes and thought _what am I doing?_

**AN:**

**Well, hi there! I'm sooo sorry it's been such a long time since I updated. With school starting up in August I just got very very busy. So from now on if it's awhile from update to update, don't think I've given up. I'm just trying to find the time! Right now, I'm too lazy to do individual shout-outs, but I want to thank EVERYONE who reads my stories and responds. It means so much to me. Whether you are a regular or a new reader. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm expecting to do different things later on, but I thought I'd do some more LP for everyone. Let me know what you think! Thank you again for reading. I should be updating TTTMU as well. **

**--Jess**

Oh! Title from Mae's "The Ocean."


	8. She Doesn't Need a Hero

**She Doesn't Need a Hero**

He had kissed her. He _was _kissing her. Literally only seconds had passed, but she felt like the world around her had come to a complete stop and all that mattered were she and Lucas and this one moment. She tried to pull herself away from him—she felt as if she would drown in his touch if she didn't. Putting her hands on his chest she pushed back gently and broke the kiss. Her lips stung. The intense heat that had passed between them left her dizzy as she closed her eyes, catching her breath. _What am I doing _she asked herself again and then—

"What are we doing?" he asked her softly.

"Something we shouldn't be." Lucas watched as the spark in her eyes slowly dimmed and became guarded.

"I don't under-"

"You can't just fix everything with a kiss!" she said, wishing so badly that he could. He looked down and sighed. "I'm sorry, Peyton. I just really missed you and…I guess I wasn't thinking."

"I'm sorry, I mean—we just can't do this." Peyton replied. She looked down as a tear slipped down her cheek.

"But why, Peyton? You have to give me a reason." Lucas grabbed her hands, but she quickly pulled herself from his grasp. She wiped her face angrily before speaking.

"You have to give me time to process all of this, Lucas. You can't sleep with a stranger after what we had together and then leave town without telling me and expect me to welcome you with open arms when you come back! That's the worst thing we could do for each other. Don't you get that! It doesn't give me time to heal! I don't want to spend our time together resenting you for the things you did to me. I can't do it. I _won't_ do it."

She turned to leave and then looked back at him.

"When I go, please don't come after me. I don't need a hero, Lucas." She studied his face for a moment and then walked away.

_

* * *

__I don't need a hero, Lucas._

He was lying on his bed, listening to music and despite its deafening volume; her words were even louder in his mind.

What did she mean? Why is everything all wrong? Lucas just didn't understand. It seemed that whenever he tried to fix something it ended up more broken then it had been to begin with. The last thing he wanted to do was break Peyton. He sighed, propping himself up on his elbow to glance over at his clock. It was 10:00. A half an hour seemed like forever when he was with her. He fell back on the bed, closed his eyes and pulled a pillow across his face.

_I missed you...and I guess I wasn't thinking._

"No, really, Lucas?" she muttered to herself as she walked around the dimly lit streets of Tree Hill.

Peyton couldn't bring herself to go back to her empty house. Strangely even empty sidewalks seemed like a better alternative. Lost in her thoughts, she found herself walking by Jake's. She smiled faintly and wondered what life would be like if he hadn't left. She was almost past when she heard a front door open and footsteps on the porch. She looked up and there he was, holding a trash bag of all things.

"Jake?" she asked more than said.

"Peyton?" he asked more than said as well. "What are you doing here?"

She laughed. "Are you kidding me! What am _I _doing here? You're the one who's supposed to be hundreds of miles away. Come here!"

She ran up the steps and pulled him into a hug. _What a night,_ she thought as she remembered Lucas' lips warm against hers and felt Jake's arms tight around her waist.

Jake pulled back and looked at her for a moment. She looked at him. Then they giggled nervously, "So what are you doing, really?" he asked.

"Oh. You know…just walking around. You want to come?"

"Uh, yeah, that'd be great. Let me go make sure my parents have Jenny." He ran inside and reappeared a few minutes later, "All right, let's go."

So they walked wherever their feet took them. She learned that he and Nikki had agreed that she could visit Jenny, but would never have any sort of custody of her daughter. When Jenny was old enough she could decide how much she wanted her mother in her life. Peyton listened intently, as they moved along, her hands in her coat pockets.

"Wow, Jake, I'm so glad that it worked out. It's nice to have you back." She smiled up at him. She looked away and then sighed as she realized where they were.

"The rivercourt again….I've seen too much of you tonight, my friend." She laughed, but Jake saw the hurt behind her eyes.

"You want to talk about it?" Peyton looked at him, surprised that he knew something was wrong, but she shook her head.

"All right, well, I'm here now if you change your mind." He squeezed her hand, but quickly dropped it again when he heard the sound of a basketball hitting the pavement.

They both turned their heads. Lucas didn't catch the ball in his hands when it came back up to him and there was complete silence as it hit the ground one more time and rolled away. A small smile crept across his face, a disbelieving smile that said _How could I be so stupid…_

Shaking his head slightly, he looked down and turned to leave.

"Lucas, wait!" Peyton shouted, but her words fell on deaf ears.

**AN: Wow,I realize that it has been many, many months since my last update and I now gravel at my reader's feet and say "Please come back to me!" I'm so sorry. Life just intervened along with school and I just couldn't find the time to update. But here is a new chapter and I really hope you like it. As always keep in mind that I am an LP fan to the deepest core so have heart, my dears. **


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